‘Holy Cross students participate in prestigious international leadership conference’

The New York Times in Leadership

Malik Neal '13, a history major with an Asian studies concentration from Philadelphia, was one of two Holy Cross students out of just 84 undergraduates chosen from 30 select colleges worldwide to attend the inaugural Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference.

The New York Times profiled the inaugural Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. McDonald Cadet Leadership Conference on its The New York Times in Leadership website. Holy Cross students Andrea Davis ’13 and Malik Neal ’13 were two of just 84 undergraduates chosen to attend this prestigious event, held at the United States Military Academy at West Point, last October.

The conference united outstanding students from around the globe with 12 preeminent world leaders—including Ernesto Zedillo, former president of Mexico and director of the Yale Center for Globalization; Kenneth Chenault, CEO of American Express; and Holy Cross’ own Maggie Wilderotter ’77, CEO of Frontier Communications—to explore the importance of values-based leadership in such areas as education, media and health care.

In addition to attending panel sessions and participating in small group discussions, students worked in teams, under the mentorship of a senior leader, to produce an essay on their assigned topic. In the process of developing solutions to problems with global implications, participants bolstered their leadership, critical thinking and collaboration skills.

“Leadership is about working with others,” says Neal, a history major with an Asian studies concentration from Philadelphia. “In writing the editorial, we learned to compromise and appreciate others’ viewpoints.”